Cold Hearted
by Starbeam13
Summary: As the CSI team investigates a brutal murder, signs of a past case start to grab the team's attention. But what if a member’s loved one is involved? Or worst…a target? Set a few months post-Season 5.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own CSI:NY nor any of the characters. I only own the characters I created and the idea of this story.**

**So, I've decided to take a bit of a break from the genera I usually write for and try something different.**

**This is just my take on a case that could occur with the CSI: NY team. Some scenes may be a bit disturbing, but then again when isn't a murder crime disturbing. Don't worry I'll post a warning before each chapter that may have a scene that may be a bit crude.**

**So without further ado…Cold Hearted**

****Warning: A scene in the chapter may be a bit disturbing to some people. Read with caution.****

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**Chapter One**

The New York club scene is one that many visitors and patrons have been known to venture out on no matter what day of the week it is. But what is to be expected from the city that never sleeps? For many people, the club scene is a place to forget their lives for just a little while and become fools to the loud music and booze. For others it is some much more; a heaven and a hell all in one.

At Club Bacchus in the East Village, the normal house and funk music that is usually heard from the streets has now been temporarily replaced by the sounds of remixed pop songs being sung and danced by a few NYU students of the Greek Life. Various sorority and fraternity members participate in Mock Rock Week. A week long celebration and contest that the Greek houses put on to raise money for local charities and for bragging rights amongst the students. In reality, it's just another excuse for new pledges, current members, and some alumni to come out and have a good time acting crazy and such.

The crowd of nearly two hundred people bump and grind to the sounds blaring through the speakers, as the current team dances up on the make shift stage. The members of the Phi Kappa Lambda frat dance to the sounds of Christina Aguilera while dressed like members of the Pussycat Dolls.

Unknown to the crowd below, a dark figure wrapped a long rope around the edge of the cat walk. He then wrapped the noose end around something next to him.

As one of the sorority girls acting as the MC got up on the stage, she ushered the guys off. "Give it up to the PKL boys!!"

The crowd whooped and hollered while a few of the other frats booed the competition. The dark figure above slightly laughed at the crowd unbeknown of what they were about to witness.

"Okay now, as we all know this is the 15th anniversary of our little soiree, and as a treat we have a surprise to all of the alumni that are hear tonight and have helped keep this event going for so long. So let's take a look back at some past competitions," yelled the bubbly girl.

The club lights dimmed a bit as a video montage began to show on the makeshift big screen. As the crowd laughed and cheered at the different years and houses flashed up on the screen the figure on the catwalk grunted as he picked up the large tarp at his feet. He slowly moved toward the edge of railing and let the object in his arms fall to the crowd below.

Just as the crowd was watching the girls of Tau Kappa Omicron's first winning performance, a large canvas fell upon the stage to the sound of blood curling screams. Dangling from a noose was the body of a girl, covered in blood, and disemboweled.

About twenty minutes later, the NYPD showed up and began to assess the scene. As uniformed officers and detectives took statements, the paramedics and medical examiner took care of the area around the stage and body. A few minutes later, Detectives Mac Taylor, Stella Bonasera, and Sheldon Hawkes entered the club and took in the scene.

"What have we got here?" asked Mac as he met up with Detective Don Flack.

"A real messed up one here. And I mean really messed up," said Flack as he lead the team to the crime scene. The three CSIs took in the body hanging from the cat walk with half of her internal organs spilled out from her body.

"Victim has been identified as Michelle Verlander, twenty-one year old student at NYU. She was here with her sorority for some charity event," commented Flack as he read off his notes from his pad.

"Geez," Hawkes sighed as he took in the body and how precise the cutting was. Stella shook off her nerves knowing that she had a job to do. Mac on the other hand stood around taking in everything and who was still around for questioning.

"Okay, let's get to work," ordered Mac as he turned to his team. "Hawke take the catwalk. I'll have Adam check the back when he gets here. Stella, you and I will handle things out here."

"Got it Mac," said Sheldon as he headed off to where the stairs for the catwalk were.

"How's it going, Doc? Haven't seen you in awhile," commented Flack as he showed the CSI where to go.

"Oh, you know. Just your average typical Sunday night," Hawkes teased. "Still amazes me how creative people can be."

"You ask me, this perp has seen one to many slasher films," said Flack before walking away and continuing his questioning.

As Mac dealt with processing and taking pictures of the body and the stage, Stella began to take photos of the rest of the bar and looked around the stage area for clues of any sort. A few feet away from them, a uniformed officer questioned a young couple who looked physically shaken up.

"So what you're telling me is that you didn't see anything," the tough uniformed asked trying to get them to crack.

"No," croaked the girl. "We were just watching the show and what was on the screens."

"We didn't see anything until…that happened," added the young man as he gestured toward the stage. He grabbed a hold of his girlfriend who was shaking like a leaf.

"You two didn't see a shadow? No masked guy or hooded figure?" questioned the officer.

"No! How many times do we have to tell you," cried the girl.

"Look ma'am all I'm trying to find out is what happened to your friend," said the officer realizing that he may have over stepped his questions.

"Well I don't know! Okay! One minute everything is fine and the next…it's like a scene from Saw or Hostel!" yelled the girl.

"Hey!" yelled a woman as she walked over toward the three of them. "Lay off them. Can't you tell that they are in shock?"

The woman of about late twenties or early thirties wrapped a blanket around the frazzled girl and forced her to look at her.

"You're going to be okay, hon," she said softly to the young woman before turning toward her boyfriend. "You think you can walk her over to those paramedics by the door?" The young man nodded eager to get away from the police and away from the horror scene.

Once the young couple, the woman then turned toward the young looking officer. "What the hell is the matter with you? Couldn't you tell that they were completely upset to be questioned or are you just too eager to show off in front of your superiors?"

"Ma'am I don't think that is any of your business," commented the officer.

"No, you're right. It is none of my business to witness a hot shot uniform harassing the hell out of two kids. Nope, just another one of the NYPD's finest trying to make a name for himself," barked the woman.

Flack was finishing up with a witness when he heard some sort of commotion going on a few feet behind him. When he turned around, he saw a woman of about five four with light brown hair arguing with a new uniform officer. As he walked over to help calm the situation down, he caught the tail end of her rant.

"Hey Richards, go take a walk," ordered Flack as he fully took in the irate woman. "You want to calm down there ma'am. What seems to be the problem?"

The woman tried to not roll her eyes as she now had to deal with clearly a detective now. "Oh nothing really, just another rookie trying to make it the big bad department by bullying a couple of frightened kids."

The moment the words left her mouth she knew she was in for it. "Sorry. I shouldn't have said that. I just…hate it when people do stupid things."

"Well people do act differently when they witness things out of the ordinary," said Flack trying to use his words carefully as he glanced over at the body. The woman followed where his eyes had gone too.

"Oh, that's nothing compared to what I've seen over the years," said the woman. Flack raised his eyebrows at her comment as a few warning bells began to go off in his head.

"Sorry," cringed the woman. "I tend to have a problem with inserting my foot into my mouth."

Flack nodded at her apology as he opened his book once again to take down her information. "You've seen worse?"

"Sort of. I'm an ER resident at Children's Hospital of Michigan in Detroit."

The warning bells began to subside after hearing her line of work and realized that she was telling the truth. "You're a long way from home then Doctor…?"

"Madsen. Alexis Madsen. I'm in New York for a conference at the Waldorf Astoria," said Alexis as she watched the young looking detective take down her statement.

"What brings you here tonight, Doc?" asked Flack as he looked into her blue-grey eyes.

"I ran into a couple of old friends and we came here to catch up Detective…"Alexis answered as she tried to get his name.

"Flack. You frequently come to college bars?" Flack asked a little suspicious of why she was actually here.

"No not really. Only when I want to take a trip down memory lane," she said with a hint of sarcasm in her tone. Flack raised an eyebrow at her statement, but deep down he swallowed the small chuckle that wanted to break free.

Taking his silence a means of not being amused, she clarified what she meant to say. "My friends and I were part of one the sororities that were competing tonight when we attended NYU. We just wanted to see how much had changed."

"So you're here reliving your youth?" he questioned. He was a bit surprised that someone that looked to be about his age would be trying to relive the past so quickly. He normally knew women in their mid to late thirties try and recapture their 'glory days of beauty'.

Alexis chuckled at his question understanding how it may look anyone outside of her circle of friends. "Actually it was more like having a laugh at what these kids have thought up. This is far more…elaborate then when I was a student." _'Wow that made me just sound like some old lady.'_

"Okay then. So what did you see while you're with your party," asked Flack returning back to tough cop mode.

"Well I was with my friends at one of the tables near the bar. We were watching the video clips that were on the screen. I felt my phone go off in my purse, so I bent down to pick it up. The next think I heard were the screams and saw the body dangling from the catwalk," said Alexis as a small chill ran down her back upon remembering the scene. "I then called 911 and saw a couple of girls get hurt while everyone was trying to get out. I went over to help and keep those from getting injured any worse then they already were."

"Where was this?" Don asked.

"Uhh…over there," nodded Alexis toward an area some ten feet directly behind Flack.

"Okay then. Did you see anything else? Hear anything?"

"Just screams. But I did see someone heading back behind the stage area. Didn't get a good look at him."

"You're sure it was a man?"

"Yes. He was about five eleven, maybe six, six one at most."

"Hair color?"

"Dark? He could have been wearing a hat or something. I'm sorry. Like I said, I only saw him for a split second."

"No. That's fine. So then you continued to attend to the injured?"

"Until the paramedics arrived. Then a kid started having an asthma attack, so I got him calmed down enough. Then I ran into the hot shot rookie," said Alexis getting a little agitated just thinking about how the uniform was acting.

"Why don't we lay off the name calling for now doc," said Flack a little defensively.

Alexis could tell that she was dealing a cop that would stick up for any of his fellow comrades no matter if he or she was in the wrong. _'Oh great. I just pissed him off even more.'_

"Sorry," she said apologetically. "I just have a difficult time dealing with the boys in blue thinking that scaring kids who are already frightened out of their minds is going to get them somewhere."

"You deal with a lot of officers in your line of work?" asked Don.

"More so then I would like too. Especially with all the corruption with the DPD and everything else that went on in the city. Plus it also doesn't really help when you have several relatives working for the department," said Alexis off handedly.

"Father? Brother?"

"Uncles and cousins, especially in Chicago and here in the city. Now do you want to know what I got on my sixth birthday or are you finished playing twenty questions about my life, which frankly is none of your business," Alexis snapped. Normally she held all officers with the highest respect, but there was something about this one that just seemed a bit…off.

"Simply asking a few questions here Doc," said Flack trying to keep his own temper in check.

"And finding out my family history is a matter of importance to this case?" she spat out quicker than she could stop herself.

"I'm starting to not like your tone," Flack growled.

"Well, frankly I'm getting a little tired of your bullshit questions that are none of your business, _Detective_."

Flack was about retort to this smart mouth doctor, when he was stopped by Stella. "Hey Flack I think we got something here."

Stella saw that Flack was getting into a pretty heated argument with one of the witnesses and quickly decided to put a stop to it before he did something he would regret later on or possibly cost him a headache with a complaint. However once she had gotten there and saw whom he was arguing with, her entire mood changed.

"Lexie?" questioned Stella.

Alexis had closed her eyes a moment before the joining officer decided to step in. She silently thanked the gods for sending this person before she had done something that would have probably landed her in jail for the evening. But when she heard the officer called her by her nickname, it took her off guard.

Upon opening her eyes she found she was face to face with an old friend. "Stella? Oh my god! Wow!" laughed Alexis as she went to give her a hug.

"W-what are you doing here? I thought you were still in Detroit?" asked Stella as she wrapped her arms around the young woman she thought of as a younger sister.

"I am. I'm in town for a conference, and I happened to meet up with some friends," Alexis chuckled as she scratched the back of her neck. As the two women began to catch up for a bit with Flack looking on, the three of them heard a voice from behind.

"Hey Stell, did you…" said Mac until he caught a look at whom his colleague was talking too. "Lex?"

"Hey Mac," chuckled Alexis as she shook her head. "Should have known you'd be here too."

Mac stared at her for a moment before a smile broke across his face. "Come here you." He quickly discarded his gloves into his kit before wrapping his arms around his favorite cousin.

"I've missed you," he said soft to her as he gave her a quick squeeze.

"Missed you, too," Alexis replied as she gave him a peck on the cheek before pulling away.

"Why didn't you call me to tell me you were in town?" he questioned. "When did you get in?"

"Whoa! Take it easy there big cuz! I got in this morning and I did you call…twice. But apparently you didn't check your messages," laughed Alexis as she shook her head. "I knew I should have called the lab. I would have probably had better luck there."

"Yeah yeah yeah," said Mac as he tried to not roll his eyes. He noticed Don standing there for a moment before he began to walk away from them.

"Flack, wait. I'd like to introduce the pride of the Taylor family…."

"More like the headache and black sheep," said Alexis in a low tone. Mac gave her a quick glare before continuing his introduction.

"My cousin Alexis Taylor-Madsen."

"We've met," said Flack dryly.

Alexis glared at the detective for a moment at him for his tone before explaining to Stella and Mac. "Yes, your _friend_ here was just questioning me about what happened."

"While stopping her from pissing off one of the uniforms," Flack added.

Alexis turned to face Flack before firing back her own response. "Your uniform was lucky that those kids were in shock and didn't threaten to have mommy and daddy sue your department."

"Hey we can take care of ourselves," Flack retorted.

"I'm sure you can there Kojak," Alexis replied before being pulled away by Mac.

"Okay, I think that's enough," said Stella as she pushed Flack in the opposite direction. "Lexie I'll catch up with you later."

"Sure Stell. It was a pleasure meeting you _detective_," she yelled. Once she turned back around to face Mac she knew she was in for it.

"Lex what the hell was that?" he asked, amazed at his cousin's behavior.

Alexis sighed deeply as she tried to calm down with her encounter. "Sorry Mac. I know he's one of your guys, but…seeing them treat those kids like that…"

"Hey Flack's a good guy. He's just going through some hard times now," said Mac offhandedly. He watched as Stella took Flack outside for some air and felt a bit sorry for him. Ever since Jessica Angell's death, some six months prior, his comrade and friend hadn't been the same.

"Aren't we all these days?" Alexis questioned as she took a deep breath.

Mac let out a small chuckle at her remark. He didn't realize until this moment how much he missed this woman that he thought of more as a sister then a cousin. "So what are you doing here Lexie?"

"I'm in for a conference that I'm presenting at. When I arrived at JFK I ran into my old friend Jane. She's in town for this, Mock Rock," explained Alexis.

"Mock Rock?"

Alexis explained what the event really was and how the Greek Houses of NYU raised money for several charities and local hospitals.

"Is this a one night deal?" he asked.

"It used to be. Now it's pretty much a week long event," said Alexis.

"Students have time for all of this?" Mac questioned as he took in the club scene.

"Mac, since when have you known college students to not make up an excuse to not study?"

"Good point. So…you and Jane came here for this anniversary and then what?"

"We had a couple of drinks with some other people we knew. Then my phone went off and then all hell broke loose," said Alexis as she shook her head while glancing at the body. "Mac I've seen some pretty gruesome things. But to pull this at a charity event?"

Mac nodded in understanding wondering the same thing. "Did you see anything or anyone?"

"I told Columbo over there everything I saw. There was someone that went out the back way but I didn't really get a good look at him," Alexis said as she nodded toward where Flack and Stella stood looking over evidence.

Mac raised an eyebrow at her comment before asking his next question. "Where are you staying at Lex?"

"The ASCP is putting me up at the Waldorf," said Alexis casually.

"How tragic for you," commented Mac dryly which caused a smile to spread across Alexis's face.

"Mac can I leave now? I'm really tired and it's been a very long night," she asked as she rubbed her tired eyes.

"Yeah. Yeah, I need to get back to the scene. I'll call you later?"

"Okay. If you remember," she said with a smirk. "I'll see you later cuz."

Mac shook his head as he made sure she left the scene without any hassle. A small smile remained on his face until he put another pair of latex gloves on and went back to work.

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**Well there is chapter one!**

**Please review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Yup…another chapter.**

**Please review!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own CSI: NY nor the characters. Just the stuff I made up.**

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**Chapter Two**

In the early afternoon hours, Danny Messer wishes he would have gotten just a few more hours of sleep, but unfortunately his daughter thought otherwise. As he rubs his eyes trying to wake up a little more, he nearly misses the fact that he had arrived to the floor of the crime lab.

"Gonna be a long day," he sighed to himself.

"Hey Danny," said Mac from behind. "How's the baby?"

Danny perked up a bit to avoid being questioned further from his boss. "Good. Lucy is doing really well now." _'Especially now that she's asleep down in day care.'_

"So what have got here Mac?" he asked as he grabbed the folder that Mac was passing over.

"Homicide at Bacchus, during some sort of charity event held by NYU students," said Mac as the two continued to walk down the hall toward the trace lab.

Danny scanned through the file and photos quickly before he noticed the list of Greek frats and sororities listed. "Mock Rock?"

Mac stopped in his tracks at Danny's surprised tone. "You've heard of it?"

"Yeah. I went to it a couple of times while I was there. It was pretty funny actually. Seeing all those goofball Greek heads acting like a idiots," he said with a laugh.

"So this is a common thing that happens now?" said Mac suddenly feeling a bit older. He was usually up to date on what the colleges and universities in New York put on, especially in his line of work.

"Yeah, a bunch of colleges do it. Greeks especially. I remember this one time I was seeing this girl and she was in it. This one frat decided to re-enact a scene from some crappy '80s dance movie, while dressed in sweats made for their kid sisters," Danny laughed.

"I'm sure I had to been there to appreciate it," said Mac dryly. "I want you to run trace on the evidence Sheldon found since he's out on the field still."

"You got it Mac," Danny replied before stepping into the lab with Adam and getting to work.

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There were very few things that Stella hated about her job, especially when it came to paper work. As Stella stood up from her desk deciding she needed a break from working on the Verlander case, she noticed a friendly face walking around the halls of the lab.

"Lexie?" she said from her door.

"Hey Stella," said Alexis with a warm smile.

Stella walked over to her and enwrapped her in another warm hug. "What are you doing here?"

"Came to see if I could pry the micropipette out of Mac's hand and take him out to lunch," sighed Alexis. "That is if I can find him."

"Good luck with that. If you're able to do that it would be a miracle," laughed Stella. She noticed that Alexis seemed to be in awe of the lab. "Something wrong?"

"No, it just this place. It's changed a lot since I was lat here," Alexis commented as she admired her surrounding.

"I guess it has changed a bit," said Stella as she realized that it had been awhile since Lexie had been in New York. Almost six years to be exact. "Hey, come on and sit down," she said as she motioned for her come into her office.

As Alexis walked in, she noticed the pile of paper work on Stella's desk and gave her a skeptical look. "You sure? You look kinda busy."

"Park it," Stella ordered as she sat on the couch located on the far wall from her desk.

Alexis couldn't help but chuckle at her friend's eagerness to be distracted from the paper work. She couldn't blame her though. She knew for a fact that there were about seven large files still on her desk back in Detroit that she hadn't gotten to before her trip.

"So tell me about life. What's been going on with you? How's life in Detroit?" asked Stella.

"Fine," said Alexis with a shrug. "Other than the fact that it's a bit depressing now because of what's happened with…everything. But at least they still have some pretty good teams."

"I think you are the only woman I know who still knows more about sports than most guys," chuckled Stella.

"Hey I wouldn't talk if I were you, Ms. I know every pitcher, short-stop, and catcher that has played for the Yankee's since 1986."

"'88 actually. And you are still sworn to secrecy," said Stella.

"Excuse me," said Alexis apologetically. "So what about you? Mac said something about the both of you were in Greece?"

"Oh that's a long story. But I did get to see where my mom was," said Stella with a hint of sadness in her voice.

"Really? What was it like?" Alexis asked only to be interrupted by someone.

"Hey Stell, Mac wanted you to take a look at this," said Danny as he came into the office. He stopped dead in his tracks upon seeing that Stella was not alone. "Al?"

"Hey Dan," said Alexis warmly as she chuckled upon seeing the shocked look on his face. "How are you?"

"I'm great. Get over here kid," he said waving his arms and hugged her tightly. "Oh, I've missed you, kid. What are you doing here? How've you been?"

"I'm doing pretty good," she laughed at her old friend's eagerness. "I stopped by to see if I could steal Mac, but I ran into Stella instead."

"Are you back?" said Danny eagerly.

Alexis shook her head. "No. No, I'm just visiting for a conference."

"Well look at you Ms. Big-shot."

"Hey I wouldn't talk if I were you. Now what's this I hear that the notorious ladies man has traded in his title for 'family-man'?" said Alexis with her arms crossed.

"Eh, Mac told you huh?" said Danny as he scratched the back of his neck.

"He might have said a thing or two. Of course I'm still pissed that I had to hear it from him and not my former best friend," said Alexis jokingly.

"Yeah, okay I'm a rat," he said with a chuckle.

"Things good though with you and everything?" she asked genuinely concerned.

"Couldn't be happier," he replied with a big grin upon thinking of his family.

"Good. I'm glad. You deserve to be happy Danny," said Alexis before a feeling a slight awkwardness passed between the two of them. "Well…I guess I should go find Mac."

Danny blinked at the change of subject and noticed Stella trying to seem invisible. "Yeah I need to Sid downstairs about the DB. I'll show you where Mac is," said Danny as he handed the folder over to Stella.

"Stella I'll give you a call later tonight," said Alexis as she and Danny left the office. The two friends walked down the hall for a bit in silence, before Alexis playfully bumped into him.

"Relax Messer. It's still me," said Alexis causing Danny to laugh.

"I know, it's just…"started Danny.

"Danny, it's cool," laughed Alexis. She leaned over and gave him another hug. "As long as you're happy, then I'm happy. But of course you know if she hurts you, I'm going to cut the ho."

"Hey, that's the mother of my kid you're talking about," he said in defense.

"Yeah, but you're still my guy," she added. "I'll let you get back to work. It was good seeing you again Messer."

"Likewise Taylor," he said before pulling her in yet another hug and a quick peck on the lips. As he watched her walk away from him, he didn't know that Lindsay was walking up behind him and saw the whole thing.

Once he turned around to walk back toward the elevators, he came face to face with his wife. "Hey sweetie. What are you doing here? I thought you were off already?"

"I stayed to help with some tests. Who was that?" she asked a little jealous.

"Who?"

"That woman I just saw you with," she said nodding toward the end of the hall.

"Oh, she's just an old friend. I got to run down to see Sid. Right after I pop in on Lucy. Wouldn't want her to forget who 'Daddy' is," he said before giving his wife a kiss and heading off down the hall.

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Alexis walked down to the trace lab to find that she had just missed Mac decided to then just wait in his office. As she rounded the corner, she bumped into a woman carrying a bunch of files that were now on the floor.

"Oh! I'm so sorry. I 'm such a klutz in public," said Alexis as she bent down to help the woman with her files.

Lindsay looked up and noticed that it was the same woman that she had seen Danny with. "It's alright. It was my fault anyway."

"You're too kind," laughed Alexis as she grabbed the last of the paperwork and handed over to Lindsay. As the two women stood up, they both noticed that they were about the same height and size.

"Thanks," said Lindsay as she carefully eyed the woman.

"You're welcome," Alexis replied before looking around to see if Mac was in his office.

"Can I help you? Are you lost or something?" inquired Lindsay.

"No. I'm fine. Just trying to track down someone," said Alexis getting a bit frustrated.

"Oh? Who? Maybe I could help," said Lindsay suddenly wondering if she was looking for Danny again.

Alexis turned back toward Lindsay and let out a big sigh about to give up on her search. "Well…you wouldn't happen to know where Mac Taylor is?"

"Lexie?" said a voice from behind her. Mac stood behind her surprised to see her again and a bit suspicious. "What are you doing here?"

"Ah, _there_ you are! You know you're a hard man to track down. I've come to kidnap you for a bite to eat. Even if just for dog," said Alexis. "Knowing you, you've probably backed up with work as usual."

"Well…with an offer like that how could I resist," said Mac dryly. "Oh have you met Lindsay?"

Alexis turned back to the woman that she had just bumped into. "Not really."

Mac saw Lindsay with her trade mark stare when she's sizing up a suspect or trying to catch Danny in a lie. He then introduced the woman and caught Alexis off guard. "Danny's Lindsay? Oh! Hi! It's very nice to meet you. Mac's told me about you."

"Good things I hope," said Lindsay a little at ease now for some reason.

"Nothing but. I guess congratulations are in order on your baby…girl right?"

"Yes. Lucy," replied Lindsay with a smile.

"Pretty name. How old is she now?"

"Lex! Knock it off," said Mac.

"What? I can't help it. Kids are my profession, Mac," said Alexis. Lindsay looked upon the two cousins at a complete loss. It wasn't until Mac explained that she was a pediatrician.

"Sorry, I'm around kids twenty-four seven. Its habit by now," commented Alexis.

"It's fine. She's doing very well actually. Thank you for asking." There was something about Alexis's smile that made Lindsay feel two things. The first was to get to know her, since she seemed like a very friendly person. Almost as friendly as Stella when they first met. The second was worry because of what she had witnessed between her and Danny.

"So, are you free or not Mac?"

"Just let me go put these on my desk. I'll meet you over by the elevator," said Mac as he walked back towards his office.

"Kay. Lindsay it was pleasure meeting you," said Alexis as she held out her hand. "Sorry again for bumping into you."

Lindsay shook her hand while slightly eying her and her genuine appearance. "It's fine. It was nice meeting you too."

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**Hope you liked it. Please review. It's good for my ego.**


	3. Chapter 3

***Warning: Scene may be a bit disturbing to read. Okay…you've been warned.**

**Enjoy!**

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**Chapter Three**

Don Flack rubbed his tired eyes as he continued to stare at his computer screen. For the past several hours he had been doing research on the sorority, Tau Kappa Omicron, to find out if these girls had been involved in any other previous criminal activity. Hazing crimes, noise complaints, and a dozen other violations that come with being a Greek House, appeared on his screen as he halfheartedly scrolled through the police reports.

It wasn't until he came across an unsolved case some ten years prior that grabbed his attention. The body of a twenty-one year old victim by the name of Margret Clark was found hanging in an abandon building in the Bronx severely mutilated. The autopsy report revealed that COD was due to asphyxiation caused by strangulation of an unknown object. But what was a bit frightening was the fact that her throat was severed by two long surgical cuts and her abdomen was entirely cut opened with her uterus missing.

Flack scrolled through the reports until he saw a link at the bottom of the page that took him to two additional unsolved murders. Both victims were from the same sorority, taken the same night, and had died in similar ways. The second victim's throat was also slashed, and her kidneys and uterus were also missing when the autopsy was performed.

The third victim was found a couple of days later and was by far the most gruesome. She was found in an abandon motel with her head cut almost completely severed. All of her abdominal and reproductive organs were missing, along with her heart. But what was even more interesting was the fact that all three murders coincided with that years annual Mock Rock.

After the third victim the murders seemed to have ended. Only one suspect, a Robert Nichols, was arrested and tired, but a jury found him not guilty due to evidence leading towards a suspect who was left handed. The suspect in questioned had lost his left hand in an accident some years prior and was not able to hold the knife properly. Since then the case hit a dead end and was filed as an unsolved cold case.

Flack let out a deep sigh as he finished reading the reports. He knew that the cases back then and now seemed very similar. Deep down he hoped that they weren't dealing with a copy cat or that the original killer had come out of retirement. With any luck it would be just an isolated incident and the killer would be found quickly. Unfortunately his gut was telling him that they would be in for a long haul.

To cover his bases, Flack found the name of the detective that was in charge of the TKO killings and gave him a call to get some personal background information.

"Homicide. Detective McKean speaking," said a deep voice on the other line.

"Detective McKean, this is Detective Flack over in Manhattan," said Flack trying to keep the conversation somewhat light.

"What can I do for you Detective?" he asked with curiosity laced with every syllable.

"I've got a case here that I believe to be similar to one you worked on awhile back."

Flack heard McKean chuckle on the other end of the line. "I've worked on a lot of cases. Care to be a bit more specific?"

"Triple homicide dealing with a competition among an NYU sorority about ten years ago?" Flack replied.

"The TKO killings?" said McKean in an astonished tone. "Yeah I worked on the case. You said you got a similar case?"

"Yes."

"Can you meet me in about fifteen minutes?" asked McKean in a low tone.

"Uh…yeah sure I can do that," said Flack. He wondered why the detective on the other end was a bit eager to meet with him.

"You know where Jacks and Pauli's Diner is?"

"Yeah I know the place."

"See you there in a bit. Oh…and bring the case file if you can," said McKean before hanging up on Flack.

Don stared at his phone for a minute and the detective's slightly odd behavior. As he put on his coat, he chalked it up eagerness on a potential break on a cold case. Flack knew that if the roles were reversed, he'd be just as excited to finally close a brutal case.

Don walked into the diner about twenty minutes later and scanned the place looking for someone that could potentially be McKean.

There was only one man sitting in a booth as he added some sugar to his coffee. The man was about in his late forties with dark hair that had flecks of silver along the sides. He was pretty well built guy wearing a dark grey suit.

"Detective Flack?" he asked when Don approached the table.

"Don," said Flack as he held out his hand. McKean stood up and shook his hand firmly. It was then that Don noticed that they were about the same height.

"Kris," said McKean as the two men took a seat. "Now what's this about the TKO girls?"

Don filled him in on few details about the case, and on what he found of McKean's work. Kris shook his head as he took in Flack's words.

"Not a day goes by when I don't think about those girls," said McKean grimly. "They deserved better than that. Now another one? How old was the vic?"

"Twenty-one," said Don as he took a sip of his own coffee.

McKean shook his head, "Babies. The whole world in front of them, and they end up like that." He paused for a moment before continuing. "Everything you've said thus far seems the same. You are right about that. Except for how the body was found. The first victim was hanging upside down. Not hangman's style."

"The report said you had a couple of suspects for the first murder," said Don, hoping that there may be something from back then that would be relevant now.

McKean chuckled darkly as the waitress poured the two men another cup of coffee. "Had being the right word. All those damn kids at the time had their asses covered well, I'll give them that. One was bookworm studying at the library. Another was getting high with her 'rock star' boyfriend. Third one said she was doing laundry, when she was actually dancing on a table topless for a frat house."

"Bet mommy and daddy loved hearing that," said Flack.

"Oh yeah," chuckled McKean.

"So…no one really stood out?"

McKean thought for a moment about the first TKO murder. "Not really. There was one though later…a girl from the house. She had an alibi for the first murder, but her story didn't add up when the second and third girl went missing."

McKean laughed lightly upon remembering the girl back then. "She was real wise ass. Pre-law or something like that. She was a real piece of work."

"How so? What was wrong with her story?" inquired Flack.

"She said she was nowhere near the house when the victims were last seen. Supposedly she went back to her apartment, and then went to the library to work on a class project, then to her cousin's place."

"What's wrong with that?"

"She never went back to her apartment that night. Building security camera's didn't capture her coming back to her place until the next day. Plus she said she went to the library in the afternoon when the camera's actually had her going in about an hour and half before the building closed at five. Grand total of about ten hours unaccounted for."

"What did she say then? Or didn't you bring it up?" asked Flack.

"Oh no. I did. She said she must have gotten the time wrong. Her watch was slow or some bull like that. Plus, she said that she had come in through the back way of her building, which of course did not have a camera on it," said McKean as he finished off his drink.

"But you didn't by it?" asked Flack.

"Nope. Unfortunately we didn't have any hard evidence and no motive," said McKean.

"Do you remember her name?" asked Flack just in case to make sure this woman had a alibi now.

McKean thought for a moment about the woman and tried to recall her name. "Umm…give me a moment. It'll come to me. Thomas? Turner? Taylor! Alexis Taylor."

* * *

**Dun dun dun. Oh no! Whatever will happen now?**

**Hope you liked it.**

**Review please!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Yep...a new chapter! Sorry for the wait. Hope you enjoy it.**

**Again...I do not own any of CSI, just the characters I made up and this story.**

**

* * *

Chapter Four**

"So what's going on Lex?" asked Mac as he took the seat next to his cousin. The two of them walked for a while when the left the crime lab and ended up in a near-by park.

"I don't know what you're talking about," said Alexis as she tore apart her pretzel. Mac noticed her lack of eye contact with him, a trait she had since she was a kid.

Mac chuckled a bit at her 'innocent' response. "The last time we went out to lunch like this, you told me you were moving to Michigan."

"I need news to take my family out for a hot dog and pretzel?" said Alexis with a raised eyebrow.

"I've known you your whole life," said Mac. He was starting to get a bit tired of her playful banter, though he did have to admit, he did miss it immensely.

Alexis knew that if she didn't tell him now what she had been debating since she left Detroit, she would soon have to deal with his 'cop side' rather than someone she thought of as a big brother. She let out a deep sigh before she confessed her news. "There…might be some news. I didn't really want to tell you and get your hopes up…"

"Just spit it out, Lex. It's not like I'm going to arrest you," said Mac trying to give her some ease of mind.

Alexis took a minute before continuing her little confession. "I'm thinking about moving back to New York."

Mac looked her with a mixture of gladness and confusion. "What brought on this change? I thought things were going well for you in Detroit?"

"Things are…fine. It's just…I miss New York. I miss the noise, the culture, the sights, you," Alexis rattled off as she continued to pull at the knot bread. She heard him let out a deep breath before she heard him speak again.

"What happened?" he asked in a low voice.

She looked up at him and saw the look on his face that she was dreading to see…concern and pity.

"Is it that obvious?" she said darkly.

"Well I am a detective," he said lightly, getting a small laugh out of her.

It was another moment or two before she told him what was really bother her. "I'm being sued for malpractice and wrongful death, and it doesn't look all too well for me."

"What happened?" he asked.

"A six year-old boy was brought in with a gun shot wound to the head. He was playing around with his dad's gun that was accidently left unlocked. When he arrived to the ER I tried everything and got him stable enough for surgery. If the bullet was a few centimeters to the left or right, and the kid would have been brain dead on the spot. Anyway…when we were taking him up to surgery…all hell broke loose. The kid threw a blood clot, and was deprived of oxygen for too long," she said grimly. Mac watched her shake her head to try and rid herself of the memories.

"I'm sorry, Alexis," he said as he rubbed her back in comfort. She hung her head in defeat as she tried to choke back the bile that wanted to rise every time she thought of her patient.

"I should have known he would have thrown a clot. I should have made sure he had enough heparin or…"

"You couldn't have known Lex. You're not a god," said Mac as he tried to stop her from berating herself. "What did the board say?"

"The board said I followed through on everything. That there was no way of knowing the patient would have clot that fast, before he'd gotten into surgery," said Alexis as she pushed back part of her hair and sighed deeply.

"However…the family has been adamant about the whole thing, that it was my fault. Plus the hospital just dealt with a multi-million dollar lawsuit a year ago over one of their surgeons. The lawyers don't want to take any chances with this case. So the hospital pulled me out of the ER and placed me at the nurses' station doing paper work," she said trying to contain her anger.

"Are you going to loose your license?"

"I don't know. The lawyers are saying no. But…I don't know. I'm just…I don't even know anymore," said Alexis.

"How have you been handling this? Why didn't you tell me sooner?" asked Mac.

"I didn't want to worry you. As for me handling this…I've been better. I did the nurses' station thing for about a week, until I found my own work to keep me busy," said Alexis.

"Which is?"

"I've been working in autopsy and teaching med school students their gross anatomy. The hospital board said it was fine, as long as I didn't practice on live patients."

Mac looked at her with a look she couldn't read. "I'm sorry that this is happening to you, Lex, but you can't run away from your problems."

"I'm not running away from my problems, Mac," she said in a reassuring tone. "If anything I'm running back to the place where my problems started. Remember, I am the one that split town when her husband died."

"Lexie…" said Mac. However at that same moment his phone went off. He quickly flipped it opened and saw that the message was from Hawkes. "Damn it."

"Let me guess," Alexis chuckled lightly. "Problem with the lab?"

"Sort of. Look Lexie…"Mac started. He saw her quickly raise a hand in protest to what he was about to say.

"Don't even start, Mac. It's fine. Go. The team needs you," said Alexis with a smile.

"Ill try to call you later," said Mac as he kissed her forehead. "You're here until Friday?"

"Yup, but if that changes…you'll be the first to know," she said as she hugged him good-bye.

* * *

Flack sat in his sedan just outside the crime lab as he thumbed through the file he had taken to his meeting. He knew he was suppose to meet up with Mac about now, but he didn't know how to bring up the fact that one of his family members may be involved in this murder investigation just like she was back then. After a few minutes of deliberating, he decided that he would question Alexis privately first to get her side of the story. After that…he would decide if Mac should know or not.

As he set himself on his plans, he was bit surprised to see Mac just outside the doors of the elevator talking with Sid.

"Hey! What have you got Flack?" said Mac as he motioned for him to walk with him to his office.

"A little interesting bit of history with our sorority and this 'Mock Rock' thing," said Flack as he walked into the office.

"I'm all ears," said Mac giving him his undivided attention. Flack handed over the case file on the three murders that occurred a decade ago.

"About ten years ago, this gig had a multi-murder case. Three girls were brutally killed and mutilated like our vic while this even went on. All three were from the same sorority as well. First victim was strangled, had her throat sliced, disemboweled, and strung up in a public crowd," said Flack in his down to business tone.

Mac thumbed through the case file and looked at the crime scene photos in the file along with the autopsy reports. "So you're thinking we're looking at a possible copycat?"

"I don't know for sure," said Flack as he rubbed the back of his neck. "But my gut is saying yes."

"Usually the first instinct is right," said Mac as he continued to look through the file. As he reached the reports on the second murder he remembered seeing these photos once before. "I remember this case. Another CSI, Jack Turner, worked this case. I helped him out with processing the second murder.

"Where's he now?" asked Flack, thinking he could get some more background information.

"Died a couple of years after this case to pancreatic cancer," Mac commented as he finished up with the file for now. "You talked to the detective that worked this case?"

Flack nodded before answering, "Just got back from meeting with him. I got a few names to check up on that came up with the cold case. I'm about to head back over the precinct and track them down."

"Kay. Let me know if you need any help," said Mac. As Flack turned to leave his phone began to go off in his pocket. "Flack."

Mac watched his colleague and knew that whatever it was he'd need to leave soon with his team.

"Yeah, I'll be there in about ten," said Flack before closing his phone.

"What's up?" said Mac, having a feeling that his phone was about to go off in a minute or two.

"Someone found another body near NYU campus," said Flack.

"I'll grab Hawkes," said Mac as he grabbed his coat. "Text me the address."

* * *

Mac pulled up to the scene on 8th Avenue with Hawkes to find the scene already closed off. Once the two had their gear and were past the yellow tape, they found Flack next to a large bloody cardboard box.

"What have we got?" asked Hawkes.

"Female victim. ID was found next to her. Melyssa Richardson, age nineteen, student at NYU. The owner of the store found her like this when he came to open up," said Flack. Mac bent down next to Hawkes and began to examine the body and scene.

"Looks like she was at some sort of party," said Hawkes as he pushed away some of her dark blond hair to look into her eyes for any signs of subconjunctival hemorrhages.

"Yeah, but when was she taken?" said Mac more to himself then to his colleagues. "Do we know if she was part of the same sorority as the other victim?"

"I'm looking into that," said Flack as he pulled out his phone again to check his messages.

"Mac…"Hawkes called while he continued examine the body.

"Tell me you've got some news, Sheldon."

"Well…I would give you a time of death if I could," said Hawkes as he began to lift the girl's shirt up.

"Having problems getting a liver temp," asked Mac, finding it a bit odd that the formal medical examiner couldn't get a temp.

"You could say that. Her liver is missing. Along…with several other organs," said Sheldon as he showed Mac the whole in the victims abdomen. Mac bent down again and saw that the girl was basically hollowed out from the abdomen.

"Well, we're definitely dealing with someone who wants our attention. He's got it now. I want this case top priority at the lab. I want Lindsay and Adam to go over everything with this case and TKO murders from before. We're going to get this guy. One way or another."

* * *

**Please Review**


	5. Chapter 5

**Well aren't you just lucky! A new chapter. Kinda on the long side, but I thought a bit of comic relief and drama was needed. Hope you like it.**

**Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own CSI: NY nor the characters. Just the stuff I made up.**

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**Chapter Five**

The next day Flack went to the hotel Alexis was staying at while in town. He saw the hundreds of doctors, nurses, and lab techs walking around the ground floor of the posh hotel and couldn't help but shake his head at the mod of tourists.

"Can I help you sir?" said a voice to his left. He turned and saw a young red head sitting at a welcoming table for the conference.

"I'm looking for Dr. Alexis Madsen," said Flack as he showed her his badge attached to his belt loop.

He watched her green eyes widened like most eyes do when they see an officer. "Oh! Umm…Dr. Madsen is in the Empire Room giving her presentation. If you can wait a few more minutes they are almost done in there."

Flack nodded and thanked the young girl before strolling down the designated hallway. He noticed the artwork and design of the main floor and had to admit that it was a bit interesting. Soon enough he had reached the ballroom that had a poster standing on an easel just outside the double doors. The poster had a picture of Alexis smiling in her lab coat with a large bookcase as the back drop.

The more he looked at the picture, the more he found her slightly attractive. Her bright grey eyes stood out more as part of her light brown hair framed her face. But her hair was too light in his opinion. It needed to be a few shades darker. Her smile was also wrong. It needed to be a bit wider and brighter. A smile that use to greet him almost every morning…his Angell.

At that moment the doors to the ball room opened as the crowd of people left chattering away. Don quickly shook his head to rid his thoughts of Jess from his head.

Once the crowd had diminished, he walked into the ballroom and saw Alexis standing on the stage talking with a few men. He waited off to the side for a moment until she was done with her conversation. As he took in her attire for her presentation, he could understand why a few of the uniforms were checking her out at the crime scene.

She wore a dark grey pant suit with a matching vest. The light purple blouse complimented her skin tone very well. Her hair was done up in a stylish bun that made her look more like a lawyer or wall street business woman than a pediatrician. Though she was a bit curvier than he was use to, she did know how to dress to impress.

When the group of men had left, Flack finally went up to the stage to talk to her. "Quite the place you got going here," he said trying to make light conversation.

Alexis stopped dead in her tracks as she took in Flack's sudden appearance. "Detective Flack. This is a surprise. To what did I do to earn the honor of your presence," she asked.

'_Since when the hell do I talk like that?'_ she thought at the same time. For some reason, seeing him stand before her made her want to either roll her eyes or slap that smirk off his face. Though she held the boys in blue in the highest respects, she also didn't trust them very much. It wasn't so much the officer themselves, it was more their attitude and the way they held themselves. As if they were gods in a savage land. Well at least the ones she had come across in her life.

"I actually came to ask you a few more questions, if you don't mind," said Flack. He tried to keep the conversation fairly friendly since their last meeting didn't go so well. But for some reason he could tell that she wasn't too thrilled to see him again.

"I've already answered everything the other night," sighed Alexis. "My statement hasn't changed. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm a busy woman detective. If you have any more questions to ask me, you can contact my lawyer." With that said she grabbed her stuff and began to walk away from Flack and relax up in her room. That was until he stopped her.

"Hey. Hey. Hey. Hold on a sec there doc," he said once he jumped into her path. "Feisty aren't we?"

Alexis bit her tongue to prevent herself from saying something that would land her in jail for a night. As she looked up into Flack's blue eyes she could tell he was trying to figure out what caused this sudden odium.

"You don't like me very much, do you?" he said out loud. He watched her let out a long breath as she tried to find the right words.

"Look…no offense to you as a person really. I…I just haven't had the best experience with New York's finest. Okay?" she said. When she figured he wouldn't say anything in response, she made to pass him and head for the nearest exit.

"That wouldn't have anything to do with the murders of three girls from your sorority?" he said. Don knew that would get her attention and heard her heals come to an abrupt stop behind him.

Alexis spun around to face his backside and felt as if she had been broad sided. Which to some degree…she had been. Suddenly everything began to make sense as to why he was here now. _'He wants to pump me for more information about that horrible experience. Great! I knew I shouldn't have come back to New York.'_

After a few moments of silence, Don finally heard her voice in a low tone. "What exactly do you want with me detective?"

"The real reason why your story was off about what happened when the last two victims were taken. Why you gave the police a hard time back then? Stuff like that," said Flack.

"Am I a suspect," chuckled Alexis dryly. "Or just a person of interest once again? I told the officer back then what happened. I was no where near the house when they were taken. What makes you think I would remember something that happened a decade ago?"

"Oh I think you do remember exactly what happened that night, and what happened to those girls. Now do I think you did it? No. But I think you know who did. But hey, if you don't want to cooperate, that's fine. I'll just get a subpoena for you to come down to the precinct for a formal questioning." With that Flack began to leave the empty ballroom, knowing he would get what he wanted.

Alexis thought for a moment and knew she really had no choice in the matter. She knew she was innocent; however she didn't really want to be hauled in and have her cousin wonder what exactly was going on. She knew that someday what she had told the cops all those years ago would come and bite her in the ass now.

"Detective," she called out when Flack was just in the doorway. Flack turned back and saw her walking toward him rolling her eyes.

"Is this an informal talk or am I going to have to call my lawyer after all? I wouldn't want to be accused of perjury or something like that," Alexis commented. Not knowing if there was a statute of limitations, or if her statement back then would even fall under the terms of perjury.

"Just a chat," said Flack, knowing that he would get a better answer out of her now.

"You like coffee?"

"Depends," he said with a raised eyebrow.

Alexis shook her head at his response. "Okay…what exactly do you want to know?"

* * *

The two of them left the hotel and walked down to a bistro just off 51st street, since both found the hotel's café a bit "stuffy" for them. As they both settled into a table off in the back corner, Flack started in on his questions.

"So tell me what happened during that week, Doc."

Alexis took a sip of her latte before answering. "Please, if this is just a chat, call me Alexis."

"Fine."

"Well…I was in my second year at NYU and my second semester as a member of the TKO House. We had planned our little routine for battle. That's what the houses call the competition. Maggie…the first victim…she had died three days before at an underground party," said Alexis as she remembered what it was like back then.

"Underground party?" asked Don.

"Back then the Greeks were really competitive. Scary competitive. They would hold battles all week long until the big performance. Usually it was individual talents just showing off," said Alexis as she rolled her eyes at how stupid the idea was even back then.

"And you were at that party?" asked Flack.

"No. I was back at the TKO house. I was the designated driver that week. I remember I had a paper due the following week that I was working on when I got the call about what had happened," she said as she took another sip of her coffee to try and calm her nerves a bit. "I was usually at the house at night anyway for a few hours to get some work done and to practice 'the routine'," she said with air quotes. Even back then she thought the competition was a bit over dramatized.

"You were in the show?" Don chuckled. For some reason he couldn't really picture the woman before him dressed like a Britney Spears wannabe shaking her ass on a stage in front of a mod of college guys.

"Yes," she said darkly. "All first year members were required to either be in the routine or work on the performance in some way. Choreograph it. Make the costumes. Come up with a lighting design. Stuff like that. I got stuck being a dancer since I joined late the year before. It's a very long and complicated story."

Don couldn't help but chuckle a bit at how silly this whole production sounded and couldn't understand why anyone would want to do something like that. Alexis glared a bit at him as she tried to hold back her own laughter.

"Anyway…" she continued. "For the better part of that week I was either at the House, class, or my apartment. On the night of the show, that's when it happened. Kristy was murdered just outside the front steps of House. She was in the show with me, and…I was supposed to go back to the house with her when it was over. Her boyfriend at the time was going to pick her up and take her to some after party or something. But, I backed out of walking her back at the last minute. So Carly went back with her."

"The third victim," said Flack softly. He could tell that even thinking about what had happened was difficult for her. Knowing that if things had been different, she herself could have been the third victim really did make a person question everything.

Alexis nodded solemnly as she tried to keep the chill that usually ran down her spin whenever she thought of what could have happened.

"Where did you go?" he asked after a moment or two.

"I left the club with a friend. We walked around for a bit before heading to his apartment," said Alexis as she rubbed her eyes.

"His?"

"Are you going to ask a question every time I say a sentence?" Alexis retorted.

"Maybe," he shrugged. He flipped opened his notepad and saw a dictation that he made when he read the case file statements. "There were a couple witness that saw you leaving with your boyfriend at the time. But you said you were with a friend."

"Right," she said simply.

"You've lost me," said Flack shaking his head trying to put it together.

Alexis took in a deep breath before replying. "Dylan and I had been apart for a couple of weeks before Mock Rock."

"Dylan…your boyfriend?"

"Yes."

"Why were you apart?"

"Dylan had a bit of a drinking problem back then and a temper to go with it. One night at his apartment he had been drinking. We had gotten into a fight and the next thing I knew the back of his hand had connected with my face. So, I left him. The next day he tracked me down trying to apologize and tell me it would never happen again."

"And what did you do then?"

"I told him to go to hell and if he ever came near me again I'd really give him something to cry about," she said in a matter of fact tone.

Don silently chuckled at her statement before continuing on. "And the witnesses?"

"He left with someone that looked like me. He thought it would make me jealous or something. Anyways…I left about, oh I don't know, about half hour after he did," finished Lexie.

"So you left with someone else then? Who?" Flack asked, getting a bit interested into the story. "Why didn't you tell the detectives this back then?"

"Because the guy I was with was on parole, and the battle was held at a nightclub. One the terms of his parole were to stay away out of bars until he was twenty-one. The detective I was dealing with at the time was the type of guy that would have thrown him under the bus. I wasn't going let that happen," said Alexis

"So, you felt the need to lie?"

Alexis inhaled deeply as she tried to control her irritation.

"I felt that the police didn't need to know who I was with, since I wasn't even near the crime scene, nor had I any clue as to who cause all of that to happen. When I left the bar with him, we walked around and talked for a bit. Then we headed back to his place across town, where I stayed the night. It wasn't until the next morning when I turned the T.V. on at his place that I found out what happened to Kristy and Carly."

At that moment, Flack decided that it was probably time for a little break. He gave her a few moments to calm down a bit, since some of the other patron had begun to glance over in their direction more.

"So…"he said slowly while folding his arms. "Are you ever going to give me a name? Or can't you remember?"

Alexis glared at him through her lashes, and had to remember that they were in a public place, and that he was probably carrying cuffs. So instead of using physical actions, she used her most deadly weapons, sarcasm and words.

"I'm sorry I don't really need the attitude detective," she said while copying his actions. "If I remember correctly, I'm here of my own free will and in cooperation with your investigation. So frankly if this is how you treat people at a friendly 'chat', then I'd rather be hauled down to your 'big bad precinct' and finish this little talk there."

"Well, I'm tired of hearing about phantom boyfriends, and your 'sordid' love affairs," replied Flack with as much sarcasm as she was dishing out.

"Boy you really are an impatient guy. And a bit clever as well. Sordid? I don't think I've heard a cop give that kind of a description in thirty years," Alexis retorted.

Flack ran a hand over his face trying to keep his temper in check. This woman before him really knew how to push his buttons, something that was pretty hard to do in his personal opinion. He couldn't remember a time when someone got him so frustrated over a simple conversation.

"But," she started again, causing Flack to cringe a bit at the sound of her voice. "For your information, it wasn't a phantom boyfriend. In fact, I'm betting you probably know him already since you're such good friends with the lab."

"Oh what, you were going out with someone running trace on evidence?" said Flack out of frustration.

"Hmm…he might be doing that. Then again he could possibly be changing a dirty diaper for all I know."

Flack looked up at her as he processed her words. "Huh?"

She sighed in frustration at how thick he was being. "Messer, all right? I was with Danny Messer."

"Yeah right," laughed Flack.

"You don't believe me? Ask him! I met Danny my freshman year at NYU. We had a couple of classes together. He was on parole for getting involved with some dumb scheme his brother Louie got involved in," said Alexis as if it were obvious.

Flack took a moment to process everything and remembered Danny telling him once that he was on probation as a kid for getting caught with Louie.

"You lied to protect Danny?" said Flack as he saw from her point of view.

"Yes. He came to the club that night to see me. We talked, we left, we hung out, and we crashed at his place. It wasn't until the next morning we found out what happened. Danny wouldn't let me out his sight when he found out. My roommate at the time was out of town. So, he made me stay at his place until Mac found out. That day, in which my time table is off, I was at Danny's apartment. When he left to go to one of his baseball meetings, I left to go off to the library and my apartment to pick up a few things. My watch was slow so I really didn't know the time when I got to the library," said Alexis already tired of this conversation.

"Why didn't you just say that you were with him at some point? Why the story?" Flack asked.

"I was young! I was scared. Three of my friends had been murdered, and I had the police down my back every five seconds just because the evidence at the time leaned toward someone with a medical background, and I just so happened to be studying to become a doctor. So forgive me if I was a little freaked at the time," spat Alexis. "If you haven't noticed young people tend to do some pretty stupid things, when the cops are involved."

"Okay! Okay. What happened after you went to library?" asked Flack as he shook his head.

"I went back to Danny's. We went out to get something to eat. The next day I got a call from Claire, saying Mac wanted me to stay with them until the case was solved," said Alexis with a sigh.

"Claire?"

"Mac's wife," said Alexis. "She…"

"Yeah, I know what happened to her," said Flack. "So you stayed with them and…then that was it?"

"Pretty much. The case went cold then. I went back to my apartment. Went to school and graduated. And then…here I am today. That's the whole story. Does that answer all your questions now, Detective Flack?" said Alexis, really hoping that they were through.

"Yeah. That's it, for now. But if you think of anything else, give me a call," said Flack as he handed her his card. Alexis stared at his outstretched hand before sighing in defeat and grabbing a hold of the card. It was then that Don noticed just how bright her eyes really were and saw something behind the almost perfect mixture of blue and grey. But as quickly as he saw it, it was gone again.

"It was a pleasure seeing you again…Detective," sneered Alexis as she got up from her seat and left the table. Don watched her walk out and began rubbing the side of his head.

"And I need an aspirin now," said Don to no one in particular.

* * *

**Well there you go!**

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